Labor Day range trip AAR (pic/vid heavy)

[shooter521]

Over the holiday, I joined fellow INGOers troy_mp and -ski- and their friend David S. for some shooting at Troy's family's farm in southern Indiana. The range is in a cow pasture and is a bit of a PITA to get back to, but has plenty of room to spread out, a nice big hill serving as a natural backstop, and the capability of setting up shots out to 400 yards (we did not avail ourselves of that this time).

The staging area and range, with barricades and steel targets on the far end, pistol/shotgun paper targets in the middle with distances marked at 3, 7, 15 and 25 yards, and the trap machine at the near end

In the morning, we concentrated on shotgun work, as both troy and -ski- wanted to pattern their Benellis with buckshot for home defense purposes. David shot -ski-'s Savage .410 single-shot, and I shot my Saiga-12 house gun. I took the others through an abbreviated defensive shotgun primer, covering the proper stance and stock positioning, a couple different ready positions, loading (administrative, emergency and tactical) and unloading, followed by a discussion of different types of loads and an overview of the zone concept. From approximately 5 yards, we each fired multiple types of buckshot loads to see how each gun patterned with them, and noting how the same load patterned differently out of different guns (even ones of the same make/model). We then moved back to 7 and 10 yards and repeated the process, noting the changes in pattern size and deviation from POA with each load. Unsurprisingly, Federal Premium Tactical 00 buck w/ Flite Control wad (LE133 00) produced the tightest and most consistent patterns out of my Saiga-12 at all distances, reinforcing its place as the load of choice for my house gun. I think it made believers out of Troy and -ski- as well.

After a PHENOMENAL home-cooked lunch put on by Troy's mom, we hit the range again, trading our shotguns for a variety of rifles, both historic and modern. Long guns present included an AK-101 in 5.56mm, AK-105 SBR in 5.45x39, Saiga 7.62x39, a couple AR-15s in 5.56, a Persian Mauser in 8mm, an Australian-built Enfield in .303, and a Savage combination gun (.22LR over .410).

First, the classics:

Then the Evil Black Rifles:

YouTube - 20100906 134530

We ended the long gun portion of the program with my M-11/9 SMG, which the guys really got a kick out of. Troy's dad and brother-in-law ended up coming down and shooting it, too; multiple full-auto cherries got popped that day.

The guys join the Church of the Brass Rainbow:

YouTube - DSCN2818

50-round burst from the shooter's end:
YouTube - 20100906 142014

Then we moved on to the handguns, which included a couple Glock 19s, a Glock 34, a 6" S&W M&P .38, a couple Ruger .22s, and an original Colt Peacemaker .45.

Glocks and steel... a familiar combination!
YouTube - 20100906 161758

Peacemaker .45LC:

The M&P got much play:

(hey, what's this spinny thing in the middle of the gun?)

Finally, we got the shotguns back out for a bit of improvised trap:

Great fun was had by all. Thanks to Troy's family for their wonderful hospitality, and to Troy, -ski- and David for providing neat guns and good company. Looking forward to next time!

 

[troy_mp]

Shooter521,

Thanks to YOU and all the firearms YOU made available. My first machine gun. Good thing it was 9mm based, that way my first was more gentle.

Great AAR especially so per the pics. and vids. Its no small thing to have these experiences recorded so as to enjoy over time. "Look kids ... at one time my sight, reflexes and balance were so good I could make respectable groupings even under full-auto."

Can't wait 'til next time!

Troy

 

[rmabrey]

Looks like a good day. Our Labor day shooting trip consisted of RelicHound's Blackhawk almost ripping my hand off and Jclark throwing clays at people

ETA: I see a browning A5 in there

 

[Rescue912]

Looks like a lotta fun ... love the Brownies ...

 

[troy_mp]

ETA: I see a browning A5 in there

My dad bought his Browning light 12 (Belgian) in 1962 for ~$150.00 and got two barrels and a case in the bargain. They have appreciated ... just a bit.

 

[rmabrey]

My dad bought his Browning light 12 (Belgian) in 1962 for ~$150.00 and got two barrels and a case in the bargain. They have appreciated ... just a bit.

mines a 59 sweet sixteen i inherited form my grandfather. Best gun I own

 

[samot]

i always wanted one of those 303 enfields

 

[shooter521]

i always wanted one of those 303 enfields

Another friend of mine (and fellow INGOer) has a pretty well-developed WWII firearms collection that includes the major infantry rifles from the Allied and Axis powers (Mauser, Type 99, Carcano, Garand, '03 Springfield, Enfield, Mosin-Nagant). Of all those, his Enfield (a Savage-built, US Property marked example) is my favorite to shoot; it offers good power without abusive recoil, has a relatively large magazine capacity (10), is impressively accurate, and fires a cartridge that is still relatively common and affordable.

 

[-ski-]

Shooter521, I second Troy's comments. That was a fantastic day and I appreciated your expertise on the range. I'm looking forward to the next time. The pics are really sharp. Thanks for being the photographer and videographer as well. Being relatively new to firearms again, I can see how this grows on you...

-ski-